The effects of chiropractic treatment on patients' quality of life

Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to determine whether chiropractic care has an effect
on a patient's quality of life using the endpoints of: "the ability to perform general
activities of daily living" (patient's level of disability, and restored function) and their
"general emotional state" (energy level, depression, interference from emotional
problems and feeling of wellness), also how these endpoints affect quality of life.
Two hundred and fifty-three subjects participated in this study. The inclusion
requirements were that subjects had to be aged 20 — 60, having been under
chiropractic care previously. The subjects were recruited from 14 private practices
from the whole of South Africa.
All subjects were required to complete a self administered quality of life
questionnaire. The quality of life questionnaire was developed to suit the South
African population. Each questionnaire took about 5 minutes to complete.
Domains used to calculate the results were changes in aerobic activity, physical
activity, hygiene, activities of daily living and emotional state, after chiropractic
care compared to before chiropractic care. The results overall showed that
subjects experienced an improvement in their quality of life after chiropractic care.
Chiropractic care therefore, had a beneficial effect on patients' quality of life. The
overall results were statistically significant.
The researcher therefore concludes that chiropractic care has an effect on
patients' quality of life.
It is recommended that future studies / research utilize a more comprehensively developed research questionnaire